


Our Best Laid Plans

by RokuTsubasa, TheMomeRath



Category: How to Train Your Dragon (Movies), Rise of the Guardians (2012)
Genre: M/M, Marriage Proposal, New Year's Eve, New Years
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-31
Updated: 2017-12-31
Packaged: 2019-02-24 11:57:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,337
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13213266
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RokuTsubasa/pseuds/RokuTsubasa, https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheMomeRath/pseuds/TheMomeRath
Summary: Hiccup has been planning this for such a long time. Everything is set for tonight-- surrounded by friends and loved ones, He's finally going to propose. But does he really have the guts to follow through?





	Our Best Laid Plans

Hiccup knocked on the large brown door, then shoved his hands into his pockets while Jack tapped the toes of his dress shoes against the welcome mat, knocking loose the chunks of snow that had collected on and around the rubber soles. 

“Is there a reason why Aster’s playing Christmas music?” Hiccup asked, having heard the muffled music on the other side of the door.

“Well, Christmas was six days ago,” Jack replied, the puffs of breath visible in the cold New-Year’s-Eve air while he spoke. 

Hiccup raised an eyebrow. “Yeah, and that was six days ago. It’s now no longer Christmas.”

Jack’s eyes narrowed while he laughed— one trait Hiccup had grown very fond of seeing— and he shook his head. “Nick was involved in planning this party, so he’s not gonna give up the Christmas spirit just quite yet.”

“Well, jeez, though,” Hiccup replied, quieting his words as he heard footsteps approaching the front door. “You’d think they’d at least choose some less overplayed music.”

Hiccup knew Jack would have been about ready to shoot back a reply (probably something about the “Christmas Shoes” incident from the previous year), but was luckily saved from the teasing by the hulking figure of Nicholas North, who swung the door open enthusiastically. 

“Welcome, both of you!” His voice boomed, cheeks just a tad rosy above his massive white beard. “Come inside, the party couldn’t start without you!”

“Thanks, buddy,” Jack replied, letting his boyfriend go through the door ahead of him. Hiccup very quickly stepped out of his shoes, flexing his green-stockinged toes in the welcome warmth of Aster’s house. When he glanced up, he saw the house owner rounding the corner of the kitchen to say hello. 

Seeing Hiccup, the man beamed. “Glad you both could make it,” he said, shaking Hiccup’s hand vigorously. 

“It’s not super snowy outside,” Hiccup replied. “It’s mostly just absolutely freezing.”

“Well, that’s what warm houses are for,” Aster said with a smile, tossing a dish towel he had been carrying over his shoulder and walking back toward the kitchen where he’d come from. “Feel free to come on in; almost everybody else has arrived.”

Without warning, Jack sidled up next to Hiccup, squeezing his arm gently. “Did Aster just forget to say hello to me?” Hiccup recognized the playful tone in Jack’s voice, which was (probably intentionally) just loud enough for Aster to overhear him from around the corner, which elicited a hearty string of friendly profanities from the other man. Jack slid away from Hiccup, letting his hand trail across Hiccup’s elbow before following Aster into the kitchen.

Deciding that he’d let Jack have his fun with his old friend, Hiccup wandered into the living room, which was the opposite direction of where Jack had walked. Rounding the corner, he spied Astrid, one of Hiccup’s old friends, sitting on Aster’s large leather couch. Though, sitting was probably a bit generous, given that she was actually more sprawled across the whole thing. 

“Hiccup!” She rose to attention almost immediately upon seeing Hiccup come through the door. “God, it’s been _forever_ since we last talked!”

“Literal hours,” Hiccup said back, a wry grin on his face as he embraced her. “I like the dress,” he said as soon as she stepped back.

She rolled her eyes, putting her hands on the hips of the absolutely shimmering blue floor length dress she wore. “When Aster said we’d be dressing up a bit, I asked him to tell me what level, but he was as obtuse as ever.”

“He probably didn’t realize how many options you had.”

“Well, doesn’t matter.” She laughed. “At least I look good.”

“I appreciate the compliment.”

“Hey, never said you looked bad!” Laughing again, she pulled Hiccup toward the couch to sit. “So, about that _thing_ —” 

Hiccup quickly looked around the room to make sure nobody was in earshot. “Jeez, how loud can you be?”

“I’m already whispering,” she shot back, elbowing him. “But, really. You’re still planning on it tonight?”

Hiccup nodded, patting the small box in his pocket gently. “After midnight, since I don’t want this to get too caught up in the chaos.”

“Well, don’t wait too long, because I’ve gotta head out at one.” She leaned back, reclining into the plush couch once again, kicking her feet up onto Hiccup’s lap. “God, I can’t believe you’re so grown up already. All this adult crap.”

Hiccup smiled and leaned his head back into the couch. “I honestly can’t believe it sometimes, either.”

She flashed a grin at him. “Still, I’m super proud of you. You’ve been waiting to do this for years. I can’t believe you waited this long, even.”

He glared at her, then quickly glanced around the room. “Are you absolutely _sure_ nobody can hear you?”

She playfully punched his bicep. “Relax. He’s in the kitchen with Aster, and you know how loud Aster gets when he’s excited. Which, by the way, he is, because he’s enjoying this party much more than usual.”

“Fine.” Hiccup finally leaned back into the couch. “I’m honestly freaking out a little bit about it. Like, I know it’s something we’ve mentioned in passing and both seemed to be okay with, but… What if we’re not quite ready? I mean, it’s a big step, and…”

“Hey, doofus.” Astrid grabbed his shoulder, and he looked over to see a stern expression on her face. “Do you want this?”

Hiccup glanced over to the kitchen, where he saw Aste’s back as he spoke enthusiastically to Jack, who was just around the corner. He could picture vividly the laughter in Jack’s eyes while he was speaking to his friend, and he smiled lopsidedly. “I mean, yeah. Definitely.”

She let go and crossed her arms behind her head. “Then it’s gonna be fine. No matter what he says, you’re going to be with him at the end of the night, and that’s good. And he’s gonna say yes.” She tapped her temple and winked. “I’ve got a good feeling.”

“Your ‘good feelings’ don’t really serve as much comfort for the fact that you still don’t know how to whisper,” he replied, watching Jack and Aster come out from the back corner of the kitchen to join them in the living room. North was quick to join them all, holding one of the triplets that belonged to Ana (who had apparently arrived unbeknownst to Hic during his conversation). The small three-year old looked absolutely awestruck to be so high in the air, and the other two, who were trailing behind Ana and North as they entered the room, seemed markedly jealous of their little sister.  


* * *

The night wore on, each person enjoying the company of guests as the crowd grew to include several other of Jack and Hiccup’s (and by extension, North and Aster’s) friends. And with every passing minute, Hiccup felt his nervousness building. 

“What’s wrong, Hiccup? Looking a little spooked there.” North clapped him on the back, and Hiccup was glad that he was not holding a drink, unlike many of the other guests, because he lurched forward quickly from the sudden shock. “Halloween was two months ago. It’s time to liven up!”

“Thanks, but I’m just feeling a little bit nervous.”

“Ah.” North nodded sagely. “It’s a new year. Lots of stuff can happen, but it’s all going to be a fresh start in—” he checked his wristwatch— “about half an hour!”

 _So soon?_ “Thanks for the reassurance,” he mumbled. 

He almost wished he could join North for a glass of eggnog, but he also knew that if North made it, it would be potent stuff, and his stomach was already on the rocks as it was. Plus, he wanted to be completely alert when he finally had the chance to talk to Jack. 

“Well, take some time to enjoy yourself. End the year on a good note.” North smiled earnestly, and Hiccup replied by feigning his own smile as North walked away. 

Nervously clutching his arm right above his elbow, Hiccup glanced around the room, settling on the food along the bar between the kitchen and the living room. “I can at least eat so I stop shaking.”

As he began to pile his plate with various snacks, he felt a hand on his shoulder and nearly jumped. “Sorry, Hic. Didn’t mean to scare you.” Aster’s friendly voice came from just over his shoulder, and Hiccup relaxed immediately. 

“I swear, you’re all trying to make me shit myself tonight.” Hiccup turned to see Aster staring at him in confusion. “What?”

“What do you mean?” Aster prodded.

“Oh, I’m just jumpy. Everyone keeps sneaking up on me and surprising me.”

Aster’s perplexed frown softened into a broad smile. “Oh, I see.” He winked, elbowing Hiccup lightly. “No surprises for you, eh?”

“Not none,” he replied, picking up his red plate. “Just… less.”

“Well, the food belongs in your mouth, not on the floor.” Aster turned away with a smug expression on his face. “Better eat quick, though. Ball’s about to drop.”

“About to? I have—” He checked the clock and sighed. “Twenty minutes. Great.”

Narrowly avoiding a collision with one of Ana’s children, Hiccup maneuvered his way around the counter back toward the living room, passing through to the dining room where Jack was sitting and chatting with some of the other guests. Jack smiled up at him enthusiastically. “Finally getting food?” He tugged a chair out from the table next to him and Hiccup plopped down into it. “Ana’s artichoke dip was pretty good.”

Hiccup nodded, and gulped, staring down at his plate. “Yeah, I tried some a bit ago. Pretty tasty.” He glanced up to see Jack raising an eyebrow at him, and immediately felt his next start to heat up. “I, uh— I need to go get some water.”

The amusement on Jack’s face morphed into concern. “You okay?”

Hiccup nodded, despite feeling the exact opposite. “Yeah, I think my food’s just not sitting quite right.”

“You haven’t eaten yet.”

“Yeah, it’s—” He flashed a nervous smile. “Maybe that’s why?”

Jack rolled his eyes. “Come right back, okay?”

Leaving his plate on the room, he immediately went in search of a glass in Aster’s kitchen. Pressing it against the refrigerator ice dispenser, he closed his eyes and leaned his forehead against the shiny chrome exterior of the refrigerator door, knocking his face against one of the refrigerator magnets and sending one of Aster’s photos fluttering to the floor. 

He stared down at it for a moment while his glass filled, the faces of Ana and her husband staring back up at him from their engagement announcement photo. _Isn’t that like five years old by now?_ There were dozens of newer photos with the children included that Ana had sent out.

Heaving a heavy sigh, he bent down to pick up the photo and hung it back up on the fridge before backing up toward the counter and taking a long swig from his glass. “Calm down, Hiccup. You’re gonna be okay.”

He dragged himself back across the living room (for the third time in five minutes) to rejoin jack back at the dining room table. Jack looked up at him expectantly. 

“You feeling any better?”

Hiccup shrugged. “Could be way worse.”

“Anything I can do to help?”

 _Make time go faster. Say yes._ “Knock me unconscious, maybe?”

Astrid snorted into her drink from across the table, spilling eggnog across the tablecloth. “Ah, shit.” Immediately stealing Jack’s napkin, she mopped up the mess. 

Jack didn’t seem to notice, however, his focus remaining on Hiccup for the duration of the spectacle. He seemed to be looking for some clue of how to help him, eyes searching up and down Hiccup’s face for some indication of what exactly to do to make his boyfriend calm down. Hiccup knew that face well, because Jack made it quite often when Hiccup descended into either a panicked frenzy of talking or terrified silence, and usually quickly replied by scratching his head or wrapping an arm around his shoulders and squeezing him tightly. 

This time, however, he seemed to be a little struck with concern. He stood from his chair and put a hand onto his boyfriend’s shoulder, leading Hiccup into the hallway next to the dining room. 

“You really don’t seem okay,” he said quietly, leaning back against the wall and studying his friend. “Is there something wrong?”

“Just.. Nervous.”

“About what?”

 _About asking to marry you? About doing it in front of everybody? About blowing it and embarrassing myself or you?_ “There’s just… a lot on my mind.”

Jack nodded. “I get that.” He reached an arm up and laid it on Hiccup’s shoulder. “It’s not the new year stuff, though, right? There’s something else bothering you?”

“What?” Hiccup’s hand jumped down to his pocket, suddenly worried that Jack had somehow seen the outline of the box, and sighed in relief when he remembered that he had chosen baggy pants to obscure it. “I, uh. Yeah, it’s something else. I’m mostly just nervous is all.”

Silent for a moment, Jack looked like he had missed Hiccup’s sudden twitch, and remained deep in thought for a moment before ending his silence.

“Let’s get away for a little bit, just you and I. Come on upstairs.”

“Right now?”

“I mean, doesn’t need to be right now, but we have a little while until the ball drops, so it’s not a bad time to step out for a minute. Plus you could use a break from all the activity.”

Hiccup hesitated. He knew Astrid was going to be a bit worried that Hiccup had disappeared right at the moment of truth and would probably come looking for him, and he figured it probably wouldn’t help his steadily growing nervousness to be alone with Jack. But, Jack always could help him. 

So, Hiccup agreed, and Jack led him around through the dining room, back through the living room, toward the front of the house, and up the dark stairs toward Aster’s bedroom, where the glass swinging doors that led onto the balcony glowed brightly under the light of the moon outside. Even with the lights off in the bedroom and hallways, once Jack opened the door to the slightly slowly overhang, it was bright enough that they could see each other clearly despite it being after midnight.

Hiccup quickly crossed his arms to brace himself from the cold. The cloudless sky meant that there wasn’t any new snow falling, but there was still a marked chill in the air, and the puffs of white condensation from his suddenly deep breaths hung in front of him like fog. Snow crunched underfoot as they stepped onto the balcony, and Hiccup’s teeth chattered.

“You sure Aster won’t mind us being in his room?” Hiccup asked, rubbing his arms, hoping the friction would serve to keep him warm. When Jack shook his head dismissively in response, he shrugged. “So why are we outside? It’s a little cold—”

Jack grinned, putting an arm around Hiccup and steering him toward the edge of the balcony, which overlooked the more woodsy part of Aster’s property. “Look up there.” 

Hiccup followed his boyfriend’s pointing finger up until he saw the moon high above them. “It’s really pretty?”

“It’s special, actually,” Jack said from behind him, letting go of Hiccup’s shoulder while he talked. “So, not tonight, but tomorrow night, the moon’s going to be this thing called a ‘supermoon’.”

“Oh, I’ve heard about that,” Hiccup said, nodding, observing the tiny sliver of the waxing globe above them. “It’s at its closest point in its orbit around Earth, so not only is it a full moon, but it looks way bigger than normal.” He smiled. “I’m surprised you figured that out before me.”

“I had to look it up,” Jack admitted from behind Hiccup. “But I figured it was something that would be super cool to share with you, since it’s New Years’ Eve and all. Starting the year off with something like that… It feels like a good sign, yeah? Starting something new, bigger, brighter… all that. You know?”

“Yeah. It sure does.” Hiccup smiled up toward the sky. Hearing the floor creak behind him, he turned and looked toward Jack, whose hands were crossed behind his back. “Happy almost new year.”

Jack tilted his head slightly, his lips parting just a bit, letting a puff of heated air out, which condensed into fog as it rose. “We should go back downstairs in a minute, but before we do…” he uncrossed his arms and brought them around to his front, grabbing Hiccup’s cold hand. Hiccup felt something that wasn’t the soft flesh of Jack’s palm, and was definitely not the firm bone of his delicate fingers. Looking down, a sliver of dark blue showed from between Jack’s thumb and forefinger caught Hiccup’s attention, and even before Jack lifted his hands to show him the small jewelry box, Hiccup knew exactly what was coming. “I was going to ask you after midnight, but since I had you alone, it seemed like it would be a good time. And, well,” Jack added, bringing his shoulders up in a sheepish shrug, “I figured it wouldn’t hurt to do it a bit earlier.”

“Oh.”

Jack raised an eyebrow at him just before his knee touched the ground in a dramatic kneeling pose. “What’s wrong?”

Hiccup blinked and shook his head, trying hard to keep himself from smiling. “Nothing. It’s just—”

“You’re surprised?”

“Kind of?” Hiccup laughed, and put a hand on Jack’s shoulder. “Keep going.”

“I mean, I feel like you know what the question is going to be, so…” Jack flipped open the ring box, revealing the thin band to Hiccup with an asymmetrical smile on his face. “I’m yours if you’ll take me.”

Despite having prepared himself for months for almost this exact scenario, Hiccup found tears welling up in his eyes almost immediately. Then, as he brought a hand up to his face to wipe his eyes clear, he started to laugh. 

Jack stood quickly. “Hiccup. Are you okay?”

“Definitely, now I am.” Hiccup grabbed both of Jack’s hands and brought them up to chest level, giggling while he continued to cry. “Of course I’m gonna say yes. But… Crap, this really changes my plans for the night.”

“What do you mean?” Hiccup could tell that Jack was happy, but also saw a flash of concern flicker across Jack’s face. “Is there something wrong? Did I say something wrong? Were you… planning on going somewhere? Is that why you were nervous?”

“No! No, definitely not. I just…” A laugh escaped Hiccup’s mouth while he reached down to grab the box out of his own pocket. “I was planning on surprising you tonight, too.” 

After a few moments of stunned silence, Jack began to laugh as well, and before long, they were both laughing as they tried to fit both rings onto each other’s hands. 

Tears rolling down his face, rejoicing in the pure joy of the moment, Jack leaned in to kiss Hiccup squarely on the mouth, then pulled back, resting His forehead against Hiccup’s as they looked down at their rings. “You never fail to surprise me.”

“Well, hopefully just in good ways.”

“The best.”

Silent for another short moment, Hiccup jerked his head away from Jack’s quickly. “Oh, crap!”

“Please don’t tell me you changed your mind.”

“No, I— No? Of course not?— but, no— Astrid is waiting downstairs. She was going to take pictures when I proposed to you downstairs, after midnight, and now, we’re already—”

“Let’s just do it again.”

“No, I just— wait, really?”

“Yeah! Now that you know my answer, you don’t have to be nervous, either, and I can ham it up downstairs. I’m good at faking surprise.”

“You better be.” Hiccup shook his head. “Okay, well, I gotta take the ring back so I actually have something to give you downstairs…”

Jack wiggled the silver band off his finger and set it gently in Hiccup’s palm raising both eyebrows mischievously. “Time for take two.”  


* * *

Hiccup had figured that already knowing Jack’s answer would make things go all the more easily, but as soon as they reached the living room and saw everyone gathered around the television, champagne flutes in hand and eager smiles on their faces, he remembered the other half of why he wasn’t really looking forward to his own proposal— the audience.

In fact, despite Jack standing next to him, with their arms linked through each other, Hiccup found himself growing excessively warm (which wasn’t really helped by the fact that they’d just come inside from the absolutely freezing cold and the house was almost insufferably warm compared to the balcony).

Fifteen seconds to midnight, Jack squeezed Hiccup’s arm with his won, and smiled at him. 

Ten seconds to midnight, Hiccup kissed Jack gently on the mouth. And smiled warmly at him.

Five seconds to midnight, the television began flashing, and every voice in the room quieted their conversations uniting for the final countdown. 

_Three!_

_Two!_

_One!_

As the grandfather clock in the next room over began to strike twelve, the cacophony of cheers rang in the room, loud enough that there was no possible way that the neighbors hadn’t heard. A few feet away, Ana kissed her husband while her kids bounced excitedly on the back of the couch, and Aster and North stood next to each other, just as affectionate as the two older men could normally get, eyes sparkling at the scene around them. Astrid, meanwhile, was staring Hiccup down with the champagne flute touching her mouth, and as soon as his eyes settled on her, she gestured at her watch as if he’d somehow been able to forget the time. 

Hiccup shook his head and raised his own glass of champagne into the air, listening for North’s typical yearly toast to the group of friends gathered in Aster’s living room. The words went through him, however, because he found himself so completely distracted by his own plans. 

As soon as the couple brief speeches from the older members of the group ended, Hiccup raised his own glass once again and gave Astrid a meaningful stare, which she very easily saw because she had not dropped her intense gaze for the entirety of the toasting (which was, to be quite frank, enormously creepy).

“I’ve got something to add,” Hiccup said. He lowered his arm to his chest once again to hide the tremors of his hand. “A few years ago, I met Jack. He and I have been here for New Years’ every year since.” He felt his heart pounding and paused to take a deep breath. Jack squeezed his arm between his forearm and bicep almost imperceptibly, just enough for Hiccup to feel the support. 

“It’s been a very long time, and you’ve known us as we were friends, and you’ve known us as we’ve become more than that, but…” he turned to Jack and smiled, knowing his smile was crooked, but also knowing that his boyfriend— scratch, that, his fiancée— loved that particular part of him. “Tonight, I’m hoping that Jack will be willing to accept my offer and maybe let you see us as a bit more.” He set his glass down on the countertop next to him and pulled the ring box from his pocket, kneeling just as Jack had done less than half an hour before (though this time in a much warmer environment). Wiggling a little bit to maintain his balance, he lifted the box to Jack and revealed the ring box once again. “There’s no person I’d rather want to spend my life with than you.”

Jack didn’t need to act to accept his offer. Enthusiastically nodding, he lifted Hiccup to his feet once more (honestly, Hiccup felt a little silly that he had knelt in the first place, but it was the kind of drama that everyone around them seemed very happy to see) and accepted the ring happily. Hiccup could tell that when Jack hid his mouth behind his hands, he was doing so partly to cover up the laughter that was so clear in his eyes, but when his hands dropped once again, Hiccup saw His smile and had no trouble imagining that the joy in his now-fiance's face was completely natural. 

“Of course,” Jack ended up saying once he had regained control of his voice, and Hiccup’s shoulders dropped in relief as he slid the ring onto Jack’s finger, glad the performance was over. Everyone in the room applauded, Astrid whooping while she smacked her free hand against her thigh in as best a clap as she could perform with one of her hands occupied taking yet another photo. 

After the commotion had died down slightly, the party resumed, with a few people approaching to offer their congratulations. Aster came toward them, shaking Hiccup’s hand excitedly and offering him a fervent blessing before cocking his head in confusion at Jack. “Thought you were planning on something similar?”

Jack shrugged and embraced Aster quickly. “Plans change.”

He barely saw Aster shrug in reply, though, before Astrid came up to him and started to quickly show him the photos. 

“It looks a little bit posed, but I suppose that’s to be expected because proposals are kind of full of dramatic poses after all,” she said after pausing on one photo. “I think they turned out pretty okay, though.” She raised an arm and rested it across Hiccup’s shoulders, squeezing him enthusiastically before letting go and swinging around to stand in front of both of them, and shouted to Jack, “Hey, lover boy. Show us the ring!”

Jack raised his hand quickly, and without thinking, Hiccup raised his as well, and Astrid’s grin faltered, a confused stare spreading across her face. “Wait… When did Hiccup get one?”

Hiccup froze, suddenly realizing his error. “Heh.” He chuckled nervously. “Guess we came more prepared than we thought?”  


**Author's Note:**

> This fic was heavily influenced by Roku (rokutsubasa61.tumblr.com) and her fabulous artwork as part of a collaboration effort to get both of us moving and finish something. Her amazing artwork can be found here: http://rokutsubasa61.tumblr.com/post/169154959618/this-is-a-collab-with-themomerath-to-celebrate
> 
> Thanks for reading, everyone, and Happy New Year!


End file.
